As any major awards ceremony draws close, there’s always a clamor for introducing additional classifications to acknowledge unsung work and delight the spirits of enthusiasts who have specialized interests.
A fellow writer has already made advocating for terror-themed awards. That would rule. Equally deserving are tabletop games, representing a passionate advocate's mission. But they will have to forgive me for pushing forward just as with other blinkered fanatics, there's a strong justification supporting my request is the most urgent and important of all. Here's the proposal: We need an award type for logic-based games.
Organizing Gaming Categories
Categorizing art by genre is not a science; it remains highly personal, and inevitably start arguments concluding with vague boundaries. There’s a reason film award organizations don’t do it. But it is a necessary evil within the realm of interactive entertainment, which are so diverse they hardly constitute a single creative category.
For the full spectrum of interactive entertainment excellence to be recognized, and for games of all stripes to compete fairly, specific award classifications remain vital.
Current Gaming Award Categories
The major gaming awards offer these award types recognizing Action-oriented games, Adventure-action titles, RPG experiences, Combat games, Sim/Strategy, plus athletic and racing experiences. Between them, these classifications actually cover numerous genres, allowing placement for numerous titles.
Different situation exists for logic-based experiences. There’s simply nowhere for their placement. Examine these examples from this year’s best games, each quite distinct: the architectural riddles in a particular game, intense tile-matching from another release, thought-provoking social scenarios in another game. What category would fit them among existing types? Simply put, no category fits.
The Representation Problem
Many instances occur outstanding logic titles released every year without proper recognition in entertainment awards, unless they happen to qualify award groups including Mobile Game, VR/AR Game, or the intensely contested independent game categories.
- An iconic brain-teaser wasn’t nominated in any category in 2014
- Another creative title was excluded that year
- Popular arranging title got ignored in 2021
- Limited numbers of puzzle games managed to sneak into small studio or handheld classifications
Importance of Logic Titles
Commonly they're modest productions, but the art of the puzzle game holds tremendous importance. Well-known matching games rank among most popular titles worldwide and have been for over a decade.
The iconic tile-matching title rivals popular creative games for the title of most purchased experience; it’s also in the running as greatest title ever. Puzzle games are foundational to the art of video games, and they are in conversation across multiple categories.
Recommendation and Reasoning
Logic titles wouldn't face that issue. You could fill a field of five interesting, varied, worthy titles annually without trouble — or rather, with difficulty, given the need to exclude so many good games out.
To emphasize again, these include experiences that otherwise have no home during prominent ceremonies. Brain-teaser creators operate at the challenging frontier interactive creation, producing among most fundamental forms of gaming itself. Similar to movie stunt professionals, they merit acknowledgment. Don't make them wait 35 years.
